Spoiling the ship for a ha'pence of tar

So the advice I received after yesterday's post was to remove the rotted siding. And of course what I had forgotten is the possible damage to the framing behind the redwood. Because this door was installed so badly we get leaking inside around the bottom. It's possible that we'll open up a whole can of worms by taking off the siding (a section 6' long by 6" wide).
Let this be a warning to all who need windows and doors installed. You can buy the best windows in the world but their ability to keep out the elements will be totally dependent on the installation. Maybe I shouldn't panic yet but I have a feeling this could turn into a very expensive job.
Rats, rats, rats.

Weekend Chores

nickel door knobs
Originally uploaded by modernemama.

The pink granite is gone and we have this splendid new knob from Baldwin in it's place. It took me two hours to finangel into place this one and the bigger version on the powder room door. Most of that was spent upside down turning the locking screw with the allen key. I was extremely nervous about dropping the knobs on the tiles, or my face, as they weigh a ton. I guess that's why they were so expensive. And I discovered by removing the old porcelain knob that the powder room used to be painted oil blue. No why doesn't that surprise me?
On Saturday Steven put a coat of primer on the new ceiling in the boy's bath and re-attached the towel rails in the girl's bath. We chose hardware for the new vanity but they are out of stock so eventually we may have to find something else. I'm hoping not as they are the right size, shape and price and we both like them. How often does that happen?
No luck getting the new vanity installed though. The faucet lines are as tightly corroded as the one's in the boys' bath were, and the P-trap won't move either. Oh well, the plumber will be here next week to install the shower base and he can wrench it apart then. Things are progressing but really, really slowly.

Knobs

Ah, door knobs. Functional and decorative and the quickest and easiest way to give your interior a whole new look. Ha, that piece of advice comes from some design show or HGTV website. That's cyber reality.
In the real world, where I live, changing a door knob is frustrating, time-consuming and very, very expensive.
In this house all the public spaces have Schlage teak trimmed knobs, very 70s but also tasteful and they match the doors. They are staying. The closets and the front door have pewter handles from Arrow. Also gorgeous, and we will not be replacing these either. But the private spaces, bedroom and some bathroom doors have porcelain or granite knobs and these have to go.
In bizarro universe I'd just pull/unscrew the offending part off the door, trot down to the local hardware store and buy some sexy replacements. In my world, I discover that no one makes decorative trims for Schlage knobs so I have to buy a whole new knob. As a temporary solution I settle on pulling the offending pink granite trim off the bathroom door and swapping it with the trim from the basement door. The basement is now looking a little funky but who's going to notice?
Then I try to replace the above knob in matching pink granite but it requires an allen key in a size I don't possess. A quick trip to the local hardware store and $1.29+tax buys me a set of allen keys, one of which is the correct size. (This turns out to be the bargain of the week).
Armed with the offending door knob and original manufacturer's name (Arrow) I head off, at the hardware store owner's suggestion, to the local locksmith. He looks at it, declares he doesn't understand how it works, but can sell me an absolutely hideous shiny brass and glass knob in a vaguely Victorian look at a reasonable price that may work. I decline and he suggests I visit the local fancy decorative hardware store where he assures me I'll find something more my taste but "it's going to cost you".
And the local expensive store? I show the guy all the bits and he finds a manufacturer he swears is going to have a knob to fit, even though he doesn't understand how it works either. I pick out one small knob to replace the above monstrosity and two larger ones to take the place of the flowery porcelain powder room handle. Then he totals it all up for me, three knobs plus plates = $257. These had better work, I have my doubts as the knobs screw onto the spindles and I don't see how the replacements are going to do that but I'll bow to the salesman's superior knowledge.
But good grief, $257 just to get rid of a little hideous. Imagine if I had to replace every door knob in the house. Especially when I really want these beauties from
Turnstyle Designs which I believe run about $450 each.